Fake drivers and passengers are boosting Uberâ€™s growth in China

A piece from The Paper, a new state-run
Chinese language news site that reports that some Uber drivers find
accomplices in WeChat chatrooms that help them book bogus rides.

Accomplices can sit in their apartments, disable location settings,
and specify a pickup not far from the actual location of driverâ€™s
vehicle, the report said. The driver then accepts the hail, and goes on a
trip without a passenger. After the accomplice approves payment, the
driver will â€“ hopefully â€“ pay back the fee and share a cut of the bonus.
Itâ€™s not the most clever get-rich scheme on the planet. But for
drivers, itâ€™s better than waiting for a hail in a parking lot.

Other Chinese drivers appear to be circumventing Uberâ€™s system for
signing up new drivers by signing up for accounts with fake credentials,
in order to grab first-time driver bonuses over and over again.

Typically, Uber recruits drivers by checking oneâ€™s ID and driverâ€™s
license, and outsourcing background checks and vehicle inspections to
third parties. But a black market has emerged on Taobao, Chinaâ€™s leading
e-commerce site, that lets users buy their way in.

There are a handful of offers on Taobao for access to Uberâ€™s driver
side app for as little as seven yuan, equivalent to $1. Instructions for
access varies. But generally speaking, after handing over payment to
the vendor, aspiring chauffeurs get access to a unique username,
password, and Alipay account that they can use to sign up as a driver.